Game



July 1, 1941. F. L. sAuNDr-:Rs

GAME

Filed Feb. 1e, 193s) 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 ZIM/UWM E L. Sundef's July 1,1.941.v F. sAUNDEs GAME Filed Feb. 16, 1939 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 @www .E L.Saunders Patented July 1, 1941 UNITEDV STATES PATENT OFFICE Fred L.Saunders, Marysville, Wash. Application February 16, 1939, Serial No.256,811

` I c (o1. ,273;105)

Y 4 Claims.

This invention relates to an improved gaine adapted to be playedindoors' and in some respects resembling the game of basketball.

It is a primary lobject of this game to provide amusement, exercise and'skill combined in a game which may be" played in a relatively restrictedspace and based on' delivering a resilient sphere or ball, such as aninflated rubber ball into an elevatedV basket by means of first bouncingthe ball. so that it will lodge in the basket on the rebound.

Another object of the invention is to provide a game apparatus includinga basket having supporting means to mount -i-t in an elevated positionand a block Vconnected to and spaced from said supporting means apredetermined distance, on which an inflated orfresilientl ball. isintended to be bounced with the proper'force to rebound into the basket,

Still a further' aim ofthe invention, is" to pro-I vide a gameapparatus' including a harness adapted to be worn by the player andprovided with means for supporting one or more baskets in which theplayer catches the bounding ball by positioning his body so that' one ofthe baskets is v disposed in the path ofthe trajectory ofthe ball. Otherobjects and advantages vof the invention will hereinafter become morefully apparent from'v the following description of the drawings, whichillustratel the preferred embodiments of the iiivention, and wherein:

Figurev 1Y is a perspective view of one embodiment of the gameapparatus, l

Figure Z is Va side elevational View of the same, Figure' 3 isY aperspective viewof another embodinient of the apparatus',

Figure iis a side elevational view,- partly in section, of the apparatusas seen` in Figure 3',

Figure 5 is a perspective View of another embodiment of the apparatus',`

Figures 6 and '7 are perspective views of other embodiments of vtheapparatus,

Figure y8- is aperspectiv'e View of still another embodiment of theYapparatus, Figure 9 is a vertical sectional 'viewl taken along the line9-'9 of Figure '8,

Figure 10 is an elevational view partly in section showing a modie'dform of supporting standard forthe basket or receptacle, and

Figure 1`1 is a View similar to Figure 10 showing -anothermo'ded'form'of supporting meansv for the basket or receptacle.

Referring more particularly'to the drawings, wherein like referencecharacters designate like or correspondingA parts throu'ghoutthedifferent views, I5 designates generally the preferred embodiment of thegame apparatus which includes a basket, designated generally I 6, formedof a ring or hoop I'I to which is connected the'open end or mouth of aflexible bag I8 which is preferably formed of mesh fabric such as lightgauge wire or cord or which may be formed of cloth. The hoop I'I of thebasket or receptacle I6 may be secured between or formed integral withcorresponding ends of a pairof spaced standardsIS, and as illustrated inFigures 1 and 2, the hoop I'I is formed of the portions I'I' and I 1"each of which is substantially semi-circularY in shape and disposed withtheir ends in overlapping rela- 1 tionship as indicated at 20 andsuitably secured together in any manner as by welding. The standards I9are thus formed integral with the hoop II constituting the dependingends or legs of the hoop portion I'I' which depend downwardly from thehoopI'I at the points 2U and which are adapted to have their lower endsmounted in a base plate 2I. A pair of spaced hooks 22A are connected toone edge of the base plate 2 I' and are adapted to be releasablyconnected to corresponding ends of the' corresponding ile'xible members23, the opposite ends of which' are connected at spaced points to oneedge of 'a block 24 by a second pair of hooks 22. yBlock 24 may beformed of wood or of a resilient material such Vas rubber;

Plate 2I and block 24 are' adapted to rest on'a suitable horizontalsupporting surface'with the block 2'4 spaced from plate 2| so that the'elements 23` are in a fully extended position, as illustrated in Figures1 and 2. Hoop I'I is preferably disposed at'an oblique angle to the'standards I9 so'that the open 'mouth of the basket I6 is inclinedtoward theb-lock 24. A sphere 25, such as a gas or air inflated rubberball isv adapted to be thrown so that it will b'ou'nc'e on block 24 andrebound therefrom into the basket I6 as indicated by the broken lines26.'

In Figures 3 and 4, a basket rreceptacle desig` nated generally 2l isillustrated which' may be constructedsimilarly tothe basket orVreceptacle I6 and'includingthe hoop Il and bag I8: Hoop I1 is providedwith the supporting arms'28 between corresponding ends of 'which thehoop-'is adapted to be secured in any suitable manner and which projectsoutwardly therefrom with the free ends 29 thereof bent downwardly toreleasably engage recesses 3U which openV outwardly of the top of abeam' 3! which is secured to a vertical supporting structure 32 formounting'the basket 21. The intermedia-te portions of the armsv 28 areVcurved slightly so that the hoop portion I'I of the basket 21 will bedisposed at an oblique angle relatively to the vertical structure 32 sothat the basket 21 will open away from the support 32. It is to beunderstood, that the hoop I1 of the basket 21 could be similarlyconstructed to the hoop I1 of the basket I6 with the arms 2'8 formedintegral with one section thereof, if desired. The basket 21 is adaptedto be mounted by means of the arms 28 and beam 3| in its elevatedposition relatively to a horizontal surface, designated 33 on which aball or sphere 25 is adapted to be bounced so that it Will rebound intothe basket 21. As a modification of the supporting means, as illustratedin Figures 3 and 4, for the basket 21, the downturned ends 29 of thearms 28 and the beam 3I could be dispensed with and suction cups 34, asillustrated in Figure 11, could be attached to the free ends of the arms28 and pressed into engagement with one side of the wall 32 forsupporting the basket 21 by means of the vacuum created thereby.

Another novel embodiment of the invention is illustrated in Figure 5comprising a plurality of baskets 35 each formed, similarly to thebasket I6, or the basket 21 of a hoop I1 and a bag I8 whichare'positioned in spaced apart relationship by means of the rods 36between which the hoops I1 of the baskets 35 are disposed and to whichthey are secured in any suitable manner in spaced apart relationship, toprovide a battery of baskets or receptacles 35. An arm 28 projectslaterally from the outer side of each of the outer baskets 35 and isprovided with a downturned free end 29. These arms 28 are welded orotherwise secured to the hoops I1 of the two outer baskets and on theirouter sides to form with said hoops a supporting iframe which includesthe rodsl 36. Ends 29 of the arms 28 may be mounted in a beam, notshown, corresponding to the beam 3l, for supporting the baskets in anelevated position and the intermediate portions of the arms may be bentslightly so that the open mouths of the three baskets 35 will beinclined away from the arms 28. If desired, arms 28 may be provided attheir ends with suction cups 34 to replace the depending ends 29 forsupporting the three baskets 35, as heretofore described. Baskets 35 areadapted to be relatively small as compared to baskets I6 and 21 andtheir bag portions I8 are preferably of diierent colors. A plurality ofspheres or balls 25 are adapted to be used when using the apparatus, asillustrated in Figure 5, with the diierent balls 25 corresponding incolor to the bag portions I8 of the baskets 35 so that the scoreresulting from bouncing one of the balls into one of the baskets willdepend upon whether the ball corresponds to the color of the basket inwhich it lodges. In this apparatus as in the other apparatusesheretofore described, the balls 25 must be iirst bounced on a base boardor floor and to rebound into one of the baskets 35 in order to count forthe player.

In Figure 6 another embodiment of the invention is illustratedcomprising a basket 31 including a hoop I1 and bag I8 and provided withsupporting means in the form of arms 38 having corresponding hooked ends39 which are adapted to engage over the upper edge of a verticalsupporting structure 4I] and are disposed at an angle to the remainingportions of the arms 38 so that said portions project outwardls7 fromone side of the structure 4I). The hoop I1 of the basket 31 is disposedbetween the free ends of the arms 38 and suitably connected thereto sothat the basket 31 will have its open top inclined away from thestructure 48. Basket 31 is relatively large in diameter and is providedwith the partitions 4I`, which are preferably formed of materialcorresponding to the bag I8 and which are secured therein, asillustrated in Figure 6, in a manner to divide the basket 31 into threecorresponding compartments 42 each of which extends the length of thebasket 31 and has an open top portion defined by two of the upper edgesof the partitions 4I and by substantially one-third of the hoop I1. BagI8 may have three distinct colors each co-extensive with one of thepockets 43 for distinguishing the three pockets, and as in theembodiment illustrated in Figure 5, a number of balls 25 may be usedwith the basket 31 with certain of the balls corresponding in color tothe color of the pockets 42 so that the balls 25 when bounced onto abase surface in a manner to rebound into one of the pockets 42 will bescored depending upon the color of the ball and the color of the pocket42 into which it is directed so that a higher score may be given aplayer possessing suicient skill to deliver the balls 25 so that theywill lodge in a pocket 42 which matches the color of the ball. In Figure7 another embodiment of the game apparatus is illustrated wherein thebaskets 43 are supported by means of the arms or brackets 44 the freeends of which are secured to a belt 45 provided with a pair of shoulderstraps 43. Belt 45 is adapted to be worn around the waist of the playerand supported by a shoulder strap 48 which extends over each of theplayers shoulders for supporting a pair of baskets 43, which aredisposed at substantially right angles to the shoulder straps 46 so thatwhen the harness, designated generally 41, is in position over theshoulders and around the waist of a player the arms 44 will beprojecting outwardly from. the front and back of his body to mount oneof the baskets 43 in front and one in back of the player. When theapparatus as seen in Figure 7 is used the game may be played by two ormore contestants each equipped with a complete apparatus including thebaskets and harness and one or more balls 25 can be used with the objectof the game being for one player to bounce the ball off of a floor orbase surface so that another player may position himself to catch theball in one of his baskets 43.` A game could also be played by a singleplayer Wearing the harness and baskets by bouncing a ball 25 against avertical wall so that the ball would rebound on the floor and be caughtin one of the baskets 43.

In Figures 8 and 9 still another embodiment of the game apparatus isillustrated including a frame, designated generally 48 including aninverted U-shaped member 49 forming the back portion thereof, a pair ofstandards 5D having the corresponding obliquely disposed ends 5I whichconnect with the upper horizontal portion of the member 49 at its endsand which space the upright portions of the members 50 from thedepending legs of the member 49. A plurality of U-shaped horizontallydisposed members 52 are disposed in spaced apart relationship one abovethe other with the ends of their intermediate portions connected to theupright portions of the standards50 and with the ends of their legsconnected to' the depending legs of the member 49 to form the frame,designated generally 48, which is adapted to be supported by a basemember 53 in which the lower ends of the standards 50 are mounted. Theinverted U-shaped member 49, which constitutes the back of the frame 48is closed by a strip of fabric 54 which constitutes the back wall of thereceptacle, designated generally 55. A plurality of strips of fabric 56are each connected at one end to the intermediate portion of one of themembers 52 and are each connected at their opposite ends to the backwall 54, in any suitable manner such as by stitching, and on the samehorizontal plane as the intermediate portion 52 to which the other endis connected to thereby divide the receptacle 55 into three distinctsuperposed compartments 51. Strips 56 extend the width of the frame 48and are of sull'lcient length so that their intermediate portions dependsubstantially below the level of their secured ends to form pockets, asbest seen in Figure 9, which are adapted to receive balls or spheres 25.The sides of the receptacle 55, which are formed by the upper portionsof the standards 50 and the depending legs of the member 49, are closedby means of the strips 58 which constitute the side walls of thecompartments 51 so that the two bottom compartments open outwardly Whilethe upper compartment opens outwardly and upwardly.

The portions of the fabric constituting the different compartments 51may be distinctively colored, similarly to the pockets 42 or the baskets35, to correspond with the balls or spheres 25 to provide xa higherscore for the player suiciently skillful to deliver a ball into acompartment 51 which matches the color of the ball. As in the previousembodiments, the balls 25 used with the receptacle 55 must be firstbounced onto the floor or base surface to rebound into one of thecornpartments 51 in order to constitute a score.

Instead of extending the standards 55 down to the base 53 the standardscould be cut-off slightly below the bottom member 52, as in Figure 9, todemountably engage a socket 59 of a standard 60 mounted in the base 53.Where -the standard 6l) is employed two standards will be mounted in thebase 53 each provided with a socket 59 to receive one of the standards50. Standards 60 and sockets 59 could also be employed with theembodiment as illustrated in Figures 1 and 2 in which case the legs I9would be cut-off slightly below the hoop I1 to demountably engage thesockets 59 of the standards 6D which would be mounted in base plate 2|.

Obviously the size of the various baskets and receptacles which haveheretofore been illustrated and described could obviously be varied insize and shape and the size of the spheres 25 could likewise vary tocorrespond to the size of the baskets or the size of the baskets andballs could vary relatively to each other to increase or decrease thedexterity required in directing a ball into a basket or into acompartment or pocket of a receptacle.

Various other modicatio-ns and changes are contemplated and may likewisebe resorted to, and the right is therefore expressly reserved to makesuch variations and changes as do not depart from the spirit and scopeof therinvention as hereinafter defined by the appended claims.

I claim as my invention:

1. In a game apparatus, a harness including a waist encircling belt andshoulder straps connected thereto, supporting means projecting outwardlyfrom said belt between said shoulder straps, and a basket having a hoopforming its open end, said hoop lbeing disposed between and connected tothe free end of said supporting means and supported thereby in spacedapart relationship to the belt.

2. A game apparatus comprising a harness including a waist encirclingbelt and lshoulder straps, a basket -comprising a bag of exible, openmesh fabric and a rigid frame for retaining the mouth of the bag in anopen position, and arms secured to and projecting outwardly from saidbelt, said frame being secured between the free ends of the arms andsupported thereby in spaced apart relationship to the harness.

3. A game apparatus comprising a pocket including a bag portion formedof flexible open mesh material, an open frame of rigid'materialconnectedto the open mouth of the bag portion for supporting the same inan open position, a harness comprising a waist encircling belt providedwith supporting shoulder straps, and legs secured to and projecting fromsaid frame and secured to the belt to support the pocket in an elevatedposition, said legs being disposed in substantially the same plane assaid frame for supporting the open mouth of the pocket in substantiallya horizontal position.

4. In a game apparatus, a harness including a waist encircling belthaving shoulder straps projecting upwardly therefrom; pairs of armsextending outwardly from opposed portions of the belt, -between theshoulder straps; and pockets, each including a bag of exible open meshfabric provided with a rigid ring connected to the open mouth of the bagfor holding the bag in an open position, said rings being disposedbetween and secured to the free ends of the pairs of arms for mountingthe pockets on opposite sides of the harness.

FRED L. SAUNDERS.

